Study:  Consider a moment when you made a total commitment to a task or project.  How did your commitment give you focus and strength?

Pray:  Is there something keeping you from growing in your relationship with Christ?  Offer it up in your prayer and ask the Lord for help.

Serve:  Do you have a gift or talent that can help another in need?  Perhaps the Lord is showing you a way to help build his Kingdom.

13th Sunday of the Year Readings

There are several powerful points that surface in this week’s Scripture readings.  Here are a few key thoughts:

• 1st Reading – Elisha seeks to follow Elijah
• Psalm – “You are my inheritance, O Lord.”
• 2nd Reading – Paul reminds us that we are free in Christ to live in the Spirit
• Gospel – Jesus invites, “Come follow me.”

It’s this notion of following the Lord that I’d like to focus on this week.  What does it mean to follow Jesus Christ?  What does it mean to say that he is the Lord of our lives?  Consider these thoughts:

• Christ is the #1 priority of our lives, above all else
• We seek to follow his teaching and example in all things
• In our weakness and sin, we strive to seek his forgiveness & mercy
• We recommit our lives every day as his disciples
• We open our hearts to grow daily in his grace

Practically, I’d like to suggest to key points to help us follow the Lord.  First, what are the obstacles that are keeping me away from Jesus today?  There are many things that can block our path to the Lord – distraction, fear, preoccupation, overly busy, exhaustion, worry – and sometimes we need to recognize these concerns and put them in perspective.

Second, what are the gifts that I bring to the Lord?  God has blessed each one of us in unique and precious ways…how might we set our talents before the feet of Christ for his service in the world?  How might we use our lives today to proclaim the Good News of Jesus to others?

The Lord said, “Come follow me.”  As we embrace this invitation, may we offer our lives with complete conviction as walk with Jesus today.